Rating: 4/5
Standard equipment is generous; it includes air conditioning, power windows/mirrors/locks, CD player, rear wiper and antilock brakes.
STEREO
Rating: 4/5
My tester had an upgraded Pioneer unit with full iPod integration complete with an input jack. The stereo's right-hand knob that functions like a joystick to mimic the iPod's controls. Scion stereos feature "SSP" (Scion Sound Processing) with three levels of boost: Normal, Hear and Feel. Cranking the volume in Feel mode generates sound powerful enough to knock small planes out of the sky. The optional Bazooka Tube subwoofer ($429) took up a huge chunk of my tester's trunk space; I guess that's the price one must pay for accelerated hearing loss. Steering-wheel mounted controls were a plus.
OPTIONS
Rating: 2/5
So many options, yet the only functional ones are the automatic transmission ($800), center armrest ($125), floor mats ($120) and stereo upgrades. Everything on the Scion xB's option list seems to be appearance-related. My test car had gee-gaws like stylized taillight lenses ($275), a hatch-lid spoiler ($385), and LEDs in the cupholders that made my bottle of water glow red ($275, bottle of water not included). The upgraded stereo was reasonable at $260 but adding satellite radio capability cost $449 more. The optional 15" alloy wheels ($665) looked too small for the car, and the $59 wheel locks that secured them are available at my local parts store for $14.
